easyCHAOS: Hundreds descend on easyFoodstore and CLEAR the shelves of 25p goods

easyCHAOS: Hundreds descend on easyFoodstore and CLEAR the shelves of 25p goods

THE brains behind easyJet gave bargain hunters quick pickings as it opened its 25p easyFoodstore - and it was so swamped by savvy shoppers it was forced to close early after completely running out of stock.

Flour, ravioli, noodle snacks, peas and multipacks of crisps are all marked with the same price, but the cost of every item could go up to 50p soon.

But there is no fresh produce on offer at the store.

The easyFoodstore concept has been in the pipeline since 2013, when easyJet founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou, a Cyprus-born British entrepreneur who set up the airline in 1995, decided to expand his sprawling empire of 'easy' branded companies into the supermarket sector.

Its aim, according to Sir Stelios, is to provide for less well-off shoppers who 'will either be on benefits or in low-paid jobs' — by offering low-budget, non-branded foods that undercut even Aldi and Lidl.

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We want to make a profit. But with such low prices, the margins are wafer-thin, so we need stuff to be flying off the shelves for it to work

Richard Shackleton of easyGroup

There are 76 different items on sale and although these are currently confined to foodstuffs, there are plans to expand the range to household products and pet food.

And although the 25p offer only lasts until the end of this month, after that prices won't go higher than 50p, still significantly cheaper than rivals. If successful, more branches are planned in underprivileged areas in the south east London, the Midlands and the North.

But Richard Shackleton of easyGroup, the brand's umbrella organisation, yesterday insisted the shop is not a charity.

He said: "We want to make a profit. But with such low prices, the margins are wafer-thin, so we need stuff to be flying off the shelves for it to work."

An initial estimate placed the required number of sales at 4,000 items per day — 400 customers buying ten items each.